A to Z Challenge…. D is for Dancing

My 3 favorite Ds are

my son David, my grandson Davey

and my son-in-law Dathan.

They all make my heart sing and I would love to tell you about them…. but… I used them in last year’s A to Z challenge…. so today….

D is for Dancing

This is my granddaughter, Lonica.

She is a beautiful dancer.

She is always winning dance competitions and bringing home trophies.

Not all of us can be beautiful dancers like Loni, but it is still fun to dance.

Next time you get a chance, get up and dance. It makes you feel good and it is a fun way to get some exercise .

You don’t have to know the steps …. just move to the music.

You can grab a partner, young or old, and have fun on the dance floor…

….or…..You can just dance by yourself. I like to get up and dance while I’m watching the TV show “Dancing with the Stars” I may get some funny looks from my hubby but I have fun and get good exercise.  Dancing is also good for chasing away the blues. It is almost impossible to be sad when you dancing around to good music.

Go ahead and try it. You will find that I am right.

Have fun dancing your way through life.

Hugs, Grammy Lura

A to Z challenge…. C is for China

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C is for China

I’m not talking about the country of China with the great wall… even though that is a great place and I hope to go back for a visit again some day.

I’m talking about dinner china. I just love setting tables with it.

I’ve been collecting different pieces of it for years. Some are special gifts from dear friends.

Some are treasured pieces handed down from my mom and my mother-in-law.

I have 3 china cabinets to store my dishes in…. and you can tell from how crowded they are I need to get a 4th.

This is the pattern on my original wedding china. It is Whitebrook by Noritake. Through our 49 years of marriage some pieces have gotten chipped and as our children married and our family grew I needed more place settings.

Unfortunately, my pattern was discontinued shortly after we got married in 1965 and I have not been able to replace it.

However, I found this Lovelace pattern by Crown Victoria that is similar to my wedding china.

I think the two patterns blend together well.

With the two patterns, I now have enough good china to set 3 tables of 8 when all 24 of our family come for holiday dinners. I just love setting pretty tables for friends and family.

During the week, John and I just use our every day Corelleware by Corning… but…

…For Sunday dinners, holiday dinners or when family and friends come to eat, I get out the good stuff.  I want my family and guests to know that having them come is a special occasion and they deserve the best I have to offer.

I know in the whole scheme of things, having dinner china is low on the priorities list…. after all…. they are just things.

Could I live without my china??? Of course I could, but using it makes me smile. That is why I picked China for my C choice today.

(Actually I wanted to tell you about Calan and Claire, two of my grand kids, but I used them for last year’s challenge so I decided to do china this year. Would any of you have noticed if I’d “double done” the kids? Probably not.)

Have a great day. Hugs, Grammy Lura

A to Z Challenge…. B is for Blooms

B is for Blooms

I’ve been sick for all of this year so far. I am pretty much down  most of the time now while recovering  at home  after  spending  3 weeks in the hospital. However, yesterday I felt strong enough to take a little walk around our yard. I was pleasantly surprised at all the pretty blossoms that greeted me.

My blog friend, Marlene, says “ Where flowers bloom there is hope.”

Nothing was blooming when I went into the hospital weeks ago

but I see pretty blooms everywhere I look now.

They make my heart smile.

How can I be discouraged about my health when my little plants

are doing their best to give me beautiful blooms and make me happy???
I’ve been too sick to fertilize them, prune them or care for them and yet they are blooming their hearts out.  It is spring….. a time for new hope and new life. I am thankful for my pretty blooms. I am going to try to follow their good example and like them…. Bloom where I am planted. Even when situations are not ideal (like the lack of care my plants have received this year) I must do my best to brighten the world around me and make it a better place. I hope that you are blooming too.

Hugs, Grammy Lura

Welcome to the A-Z challenge A is for Adoption

I am doing  the A-Z challenge again this year.  We are suppose to post every day (except Sundays) for the month of April using the alphabet as our guide. Click on this badge to join the others participating in this fun challenge. I hope I can make it through the alphabet.

A is for Adoption

Adoption is a subject that is very close to my heart. I have seen adoption from all three sides so I consider myself to be somewhat of an expert.

(Through the eyes of the child.)

I am adopted . Back in my day they did not have open adoptions like they do now. Unfortunately I never got to meet my birth mom.

That is too bad. I wonder if I look like her? I wonder if I think like her? I don’t know but I do know that I love her and appreciate her giving me life…. and since she was not able to care for me, I appreciate her giving me up for adoption.

My mother always made me feel special about being adopted. She told me that out of all the babies in the world she picked me.  In her prayers she often thanked God for giving me to her.  She died in my arms several years ago. Some of her last words were telling me how I had blessed her life.  No child could have had a more loving mother.  Adoption blessed my life.

( Though the eyes of the parents)

Since she was a little girl my daughter, Erin, wanted to be a mommy more than anything else. She grew up and accomplished many good thing.  She served as a missionary to the deaf for 1 1/2 years.  She traveled to Africa many times to work with the deaf children in Ghana and set up an organization to help them. She became a high school teacher. ….. but her life was not complete. She and her husband wanted children but none came to them.

I watched Erin and Patrick go through the rigorous process of adoption.  I viewed first hand the ups and the downs. I saw the heart ache that came when a birth mom changed her mind at the last minute and they did not get the baby they had planned on. I saw the exquisite joy that filled their hearts and home when they adopted their little boy and then their girl.  All of our prayers were answered when adoption made Erin and Patrick parents. What a blessing for them and for our whole family.

(Through the eyes of the birth mom)

My mother taught me to love my birth mom even though I never met her. However, I don’t think I really understood what she went through placing me up for adoption until I was an adult and I had a niece who gave up her baby. It was a heart breaking decision for her but she knew it was best for the child.

I got to witness this again through Erin and Patrick adopting their 2 children. They have open adoptions so I know both of the birth mothers.

This is Ellie’s birth mom. She loves Ellie. It broke her heart to place Ellie for adoption but after much prayer she knew it was the right thing to do. She wanted Ellie to have a mom and a dad. She wanted Ellie to be raised in a more stable home than she could provide at the time. We all love Brooke for her unselfish  sacrifice. Both Ellie and Cal know their birth moms. They know that they grew in their birth mom’s tummy and in their mommy’s heart.

Adoption is a loving option

That is why I have chosen it for my A day.  Now I must hop over to other blogs and see what they picked for their A.
I hope to see you before long with my B choice.   Hugs, Grammy Lura